Check out my video coverage of last night’s induction of John Franco into the Mets Hall of Fame.

Update 12:18 Andres Torres had a big night offensively, but he credited the pitching staff for their stellar performances lately. “Pitching is a big key for winning games, and all our pitchers are terrific.” He thinks tonight was his best offensive game as a Met. He’s not focused on being in first place right now, since it’s still so early. Torres was a home run shy of the cycle. I asked him if he was [...]

Two months into the season, the Mets have used an inordinate amount of players thus far. This has been due in part to injuries, but it has also been the product of the Mets organization’s unwillingness to deal with mediocrity. Jack Egbert, the “power-hitting” Jeremy Hefner, Chris Schwinden, Rob Johnson, Omar Quintanilla, Jordany Valdespin, Vinny Rottino and even Kirk Nieuwenhuis all started the year in the minors and weren’t expected to be big-time contributors this [...]

How great has the Mets team chemistry been this season? Maybe it has to do with the fact that the team’s biggest headache—Jason Bay—has been sidelined for nearly three weeks with a broken rib. Bay has been cleared to resume baseball activities and will be heading to Port St. Lucie this Thursday. Terry Collins told reporters after last night’s game that Bay will play in minor league rehab games before joining the big club. However, [...]

After the Mets dropped three games to lowly Houston Astros, one thing appears clear: It can’t get any worse than that. Did you happen to see the Astros lineup the last three days? Jed Lowrie and Matt Downs are looked at as major offensive weapons. How did this team pull of a sweep? Well, at least we can look at it this way: The Mets got their lowest point out of the way this season. [...]

It’s a fairytale story to say the least. Childhood Mets fan and Whitestone, Queens native Mike Baxter wound up suiting up for hometown team last summer. Though his playing time was limited, it still must have been a great thrill for him to be playing right at home. But this year, Baxter legitimately won a roster spot in spring training as the fifth outfielder/left-handed pinch hitter. And now, with Jason Bay on the disabled list, [...]

For those who have read Moneyball, we know now that on-base percentage is the name of the game. In the early going this season, the Mets have done a great job of getting guys on base. The team is tied for third place in the NL with a .335 on-base percentage with the Washington Nationals. However, driving in those runs has been a more difficult task. Just in Wednesday’s game against the Braves, the Mets [...]

Through the first six games, the umpiring in the games the Mets have played has been rather suspect. But we really saw it take a turn for the worse this series against the Nationals. Larry Vanover, a 21-year MLB veteran umpire, made a few key questionable calls in this series. The first actually benefitted the Mets when Adam LaRoche was called out at second base in the first game of the series on a play [...]

Based on the Mets 50-year history of mostly losing records, trends would normally dictate that the team would have a losing record on Opening Day. However, it’s the complete opposite. The Mets have a 30-20 record in the season’s first game—a .600 winning percentage. Maybe there’s just something about Opening Day that gets the team amped. But actually, the Mets lost their first six Opening Days and eight of their first nine. Starting in 1971 [...]

As most readers of this site know, I’m the eternal optimist. Until the Mets are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, I still have hope—no matter how bad the team is playing. But even I have to admit that this year, it will be tough for the Mets to finish higher than fifth place in the NL East. That’s based though more on the other teams in the division on paper than on the Mets. However, [...]